Quebec should not just modify the gas-powered vehicle ban, but rescind it, says MEI

• 68 per cent of Quebecers see the prohibition on the sale of gas-powered vehicles by 2035 as “unrealistic,” according to an MEI-Ipsos poll conducted last September.

Montreal, July 3, 2025 – Environment Minister Benoît Charette should abandon the idea of prohibiting the sale of conventional vehicles in 2035, says an MEI researcher in response to the modification of the zero-emission vehicle standard announced a little earlier today.

“By revising the kinds of vehicles that are eligible, the minister finally recognizes that Quebecers are less enthusiastic about electric vehicles than the civil servants in his department,” says Gabriel Giguère, senior policy analyst at the MEI. “Instead of revising targets or making modifications at the margins, the minister should eliminate this obligation that Quebecers consider unrealistic.”

Adopted by the Quebec government in 2016, the zero-emission vehicle standard sets minimum targets for the sale of electric or low-emission vehicles that automakers must reach every year, under penalty of heavy fines.

For the year 2026, for instance, 32.5 per cent of a manufacturer’s sales in Quebec will have to come from eligible models. For 2030, the objective climbs to 80 per cent, and it will reach 100 per cent in 2035.

Earlier today, Minister Charette announced the addition of new models, notably gas-powered hybrids, to the zero-emission vehicle targets, in order to reach the objectives set by the government.

Nearly seven in 10 Quebecers (68 per cent) consider the prohibition of gas-powered vehicle sales by 2035 to be “unrealistic,” according to an MEI-Ipsos poll carried out last September.

In a Viewpoint published in February, the MEI pointed out that the availability of charging infrastructure, the pressure on provincial electrical grids, and the high cost of purchasing new electric vehicles would justify the abandonment of a similar prohibition at the federal level.

“Instead of trying to impose the purchase of electric or hybrid vehicles on the population, the minister should recognize that Quebecers have legitimate reasons for not purchasing these vehicles,” adds Mr. Giguère. “After all, if the adoption of electric vehicles is to be sustainable, it has to be based on innovation, not obligation.”

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The MEI is an independent public policy think tank with offices in Montreal, Calgary, and Ottawa. Through its publications, media appearances, and advisory services to policymakers, the MEI stimulates public policy debate and reforms based on sound economics and entrepreneurship.

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